​The use of pesticides is widespread in citrus fruits production for pre- and post-harvest protection and many chemical substances may be applied in order to control undesirable moulds or insects. A survey was carried out to evaluate levels of pesticide residues in citrus fruits.

Two multiresidue analytical methods were used to screen samples for more than 200 different fungicides, insecticides and acaricides. A total of 240 samples of citrus fruits including lemon, orange, mandarin, grapefruit, lime, pomelo and kumquat were taken in various markets in the Geneva area during the year 2003.

Ninety-five percent of the 164 samples issued from classical agriculture contained pesticides and 38 different compounds have been identified. This high percentage of positive samples was mainly due to the presence of two post-harvest fungicides, imazalil and thiabendazole, detected in 70% and 36% of samples respectively. Only three samples exceeded the Swiss maximum residue limits (MRLs).

Fifty-three samples sold with the written indication "without post-harvest treatment" were also controlled. Among theses samples, three exceeded the Swiss MRLs for penconazole or chlorpyrifos and 18 (34%) did not respect the written indication since we found large amounts of post-harvest fungicides. Finally, 23 samples coming from certified organic production were analysed. Among theses samples, three contained small amounts of pesticides and the others were pesticides free.

I’ve really been enjoying squeezing lemon into my water lately and dropping in the wedge to flavor the next refill a bit.

I’m already changing my new habit.

I’m a pretty faithful produce washer, but as luck would have it, this week I cut a corner while getting my son’s lunch ready. My hands are pretty raw from washing them 5 million times a day and the fact that the first day of spring had a zero-degree wind chill here.

So I didn’t wash the orange.

Imagine my surprise when the box of oranges I bought at Costco later that same day (coincidence? I think not!) had this plastered on the top:

“Treated to maintain freshness in transit with one or more of the following: Orthophenylphenate, Thiabendazole.”

I couldn’t help noticing THAT.

And sure enough, the box at home that the unwashed orange that morning had come from said similar on the side:

“Treated to maintain freshness in transit with one or more of the following: Imazalil, Sodium O’Phenylphenate, Thiabendazole. Coated with food-grade vegetable-, beeswax-x and/or lac-resin-based wax or resin.”

I’ve always known that even the fruits with thick rinds, like a cantaloupe for example, need to be washed before cutting. The whole thing goes on your cutting board, and just the action of the knife cutting through can move dirt and bacteria from the outside directly to the fruit.

I think God wanted me to have a little reminder (and lesson!) about what our food system does to citrus in particular this week, since I’m already thinking critically about Natural Health Month here at KS. (top photo source)

I never really think about what exactly is on my fruits and veggies, I guess. Seeing that list of awful-sounding chemicals shocked me.

Want to know what they are?​

Imazalil – fungicide

Thiabendazole – fungicide and parasiticide

Sodium O’Phenylphenate (aka Orthophenylphenate) – disinfectant

I suppose it’s kind of a nice perk to have to throw away fewer oranges, grapefruits and lemons because they’re all moldy. But what’s the cost?

Here’s what else all those chemicals do:

Imazalil – carcinogenic (cancer-causing) and a developmental or reproductive toxin (source), and it stays on oranges at levels that can reach higher than a 44-pound child should be exposed to in one day (50 μg)! (source and graph: What’s on my Food?) It also is eco-toxic and kills fish. (source)

Thiabendazole – also a human medication, likely carcinogenic, and disturbing to thyroid hormone levels in high doses (source). In the environment, it stays in the soil a long time and is extremely toxic to fish, but the EPA doesn’t think that will be a concern, since it probably won’t get into drinking water (source). Really?

Sodium O’Phenylphenate (aka Orthophenylphenate) – carcinogen (source), suspected gastrointestinal or liver toxicant, but nearly half of the basic 8 toxicity tests haven’t even been run on it yet (source). The growers have to rinse the fruit well with water after a minute of exposure, or else even the fruit will an injury from “toxic levels” of the chemical! (source)

And this is before I even get into the fact that the skin is waxed, too, which seems like it would make it harder to get the chemicals off.

Why So Many Chemicals on the Fruit?

The government mandates some sort of treatment for any citrus moving interstate. There are options to use hydrogen peroxide, but I certainly didn’t see that listed – which wouldn’t even have to be rinsed, I’m sure! – on the boxes.

I just keep thinking about those lemon wedges floating around in my water all day, soaking off all this crap into my drink and my body. I picture my little guy gnawing on a lemon wedge because he thinks it’s funny.

And in a restaurant, where I love to get lemons too, how well do you think they’re washed before they’re cut (if at all)?

The Good News

None of these chemicals are approved for use in organic produce, so IF you can find (and afford) organic lemons, oranges, and grapefruits, you don’t have to worry about them.Unfortunately, antibiotics are used in even organic pear and apple growing – read more here.For the rest of us, perhaps it’s time to use a scrub brush on that citrus instead of a quick obligatory rinse. I’m going to resurrect my habit of using a squirt of some sort of produce wash (I tested and reviewed 8 different commercial and homemade produce washes) on ALL produce, even the thick-skinned stuff.

When I find organic citrus, I’ll definitely zest the peels and freeze the zest, since I really don’t want to be directly consuming the waxes and chemicals. (Have you seen the top 10 foods in my freezer to speed up dinner prep? I should add “zest” to the list.)

I’ll also peel oranges instead of cutting them into cute smile-wedges for my kids. (How many times have you seen schools serve orange wedges with the peel, and how well if at all were those washed???)

And finally, you won’t see a wedge of lemon floating elegantly in my drink anymore…but I will still squeeze in the juice to get the health benefits of lemon water, after I wash it well.What’s your produce washing philosophy? Does this concern you?

Check out a FREE probiotics teleseminar I’m co-hosting on April 11th; sign up HERE.

We are witnesses that nowadays there is much less healthy food because of the use of chemical agents used. Citrus fruit is not spared from pesticide spraying, in order its fruits to be more long lasting.

Experts advise to be careful when consuming citrus fruits. Lemon and orange are the most treated with chemicals, often beyond the permissible limits, so be careful when using their bark in certain recipes.

The most common pesticides that are encountered in the southern fruits are Fungicide imazalil, Thiabendazole and Chlorpyrifos.

Fungicide imazalil penetrates in the whole fruit, not only through the crust. This pesticide leads to irritation of the skin and eyes.

Thiabendazole has carcinogenic properties in larger quantities, and Chlorpyrifos is used against insects and is very dangerous. Pesticides also affect the hormones, may cause infertility, fetal strain, and of course, are also toxic.

The most common misconception is that by their washing, fruits remain free of pesticides, as well as by peeling the bark.

The washing can remove the surface dirt and slightly reduce harm, and the removal of the bark is also desirable, but not enough. In the text below, we show you how to clean lemon and citrus fruits from pesticides.

Removal of pesticides from lemon and other citrus fruit

Wash the fruit with vinegar

Mix water with vinegar, so that the ratio is 3: 1, for example, put one cup of vinegar in three cups of water.

This is a great way to remove bacteria, chemicals and wax from the fruit. Studies show that this combination eliminates as much as 98% of bacteria, and the regular cleaning removes about 85%.If you prefer, you can spray the fruit with vinegar, then rinse it under the tap.

You can also leave the fruit to stand for 10-20 minutes in the above mixture, and then wash it with water.

Fruit cleaner

You can buy a natural cleaner for fruits that contains citric acid. You can also try to make such a cleaner in the following ways: